Prescription Drugs List

[Pete53]

Now that it is generic and comes from God knows where they should quit fighting

[capted]

Has anyone been successful in getting the VA to pay for Provenge or Zytiga?

The Zytiga website says they will pay all but $20.00 of your copay for Zytiga but not if you

are on Medicare, Tri-care or any other government prescription plan.

My Medicare advantage program will pay all but $7,000 for Provenge.

Since I finally received 100% disability for Agent Orange exposure, I want to know if the

VA will pay the cost.

From what I read, Zytiga seems to be the best and also the least expensive of the new PC meds.

TIA,

capted

[john999]

If your VA doctor would say that is is medically Zytiga I think the VA would pay for it. I have had the VA pay for drugs that are not on the list for me more than once. The VA will pay for expensive drugs if your doctors can show it is necessary. If you get denied I would go see the medical director and just pull every fire alarm there is to make a fuss until I caused so much trouble that paid just to shut me up. You are 100% AO vet with potentially fatal disease. If you don't deserve the best the government can afford then who does?

John

[SP4RVN1971]

VA is going to cover my Lupron shots and since MD Anderson has put me on Zytiga , VA is also going to get the drug for me!

I don't think they will cover provenge, because of the process of removing the blood and reinjecting it into you.

Edited March 18, 2012 by SP4RVN1971

[capted]

SP4RVN,

Thanks for the answer.

I'm going to have my civilian Dr. write a prescription for Zytiga.

capted

[SP4RVN1971]

SP4RVN,

Thanks for the answer.

I'm going to have my civilian Dr. write a prescription for Zytiga.

capted

According to a media release from Janssen Research & Development (a unit of Johnson & Johnson), an independent trial monitoring committee has advised the company to stop the randomized, Phase III clinical trial of abiraterone acetate + predisone compared to a placebo + prednisone in treatment of chemotherapy-naïve patients with metastatic, castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).

The phase III clinical studies on abiraterone (Zytiga) both in chemotherapy-treated and chemotherapy-untreated patients have been stopped early due to positive results, so that the patients in the placebo arm may also receive benefits of the drug.The first Phase III study was halted after a clear, median 4-month extended survival point had been reached. So all that be can said from this study is that it gave a median 4-month survival benefit, but this does not tell the real story of longer-term survivors on this drug.For long-term survival we need to look at the survivors from the initial trials. There is at least one 8-year survivor from the original Phase I trial and there are several 4-year survivors from the Phase II trials. There are also many 2-year survivors from the first enrollment of patients into the ongoing phase III studies. Although it is too early to tell the long-term benefits, these are positive signs. These are significant because the trials were carried out in the most difficult of prostate cancer cases, on the most resistant forms of prostate cancer that had failed all other therapies, including docetaxel chemotherapy. The typical average life expectancy of this cohort is about 14 months, so any life extension above that is good